Securing sheet-metal roofs



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THE GRAPHIC C0.PHOT0 -LITHAQEM HARK PMCEPLY.

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EZRA POLLARD, OF ALBANY, NEYV YORK, ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF, AND JOSHUA GRAY, OF

,WESTFIELDQ iHASSAC-HUSETTS.

SECURING SHEET-METAL ROOFS.

Specication of Letters Patent No. 23,000, dated February 15, 1859.

To `all whom '11i may concern:

Be it known that EZRA PoLLARD, of the city of Albany, in the county of Albany and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Attachment of Sheet-Metal Coverings to Roofs and other Parts of Buildings; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, in which- Figure 1, is a plan of a portion of a roof having a sheet metal covering applied with my improvements. Fig. 2, is a vertical section of the same. Fig. 3 Iis a front view of the same. Y

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts in all the figures.

The object of my invention is so to secure sheet metal coverings to roofs and other parts of the exteriors of buildings as to prof vide for their expansion and contraction by changes of temperature and also to provide for the shrinkage of the woodwork.

My invention consists, firstly, in securing such coverings at one or more of their edges by means of india-rubber united with them by lap joints and nailed to the roofs or other parts of the buildings in such a manner as to form a water tight but elastic connection therewith.

It consists, secondly7 in uniting the sheet metal coverings with the roofs or other parts of buildings by means of strips of metal secured to the exterior surfaces of such roofs or parts, and similar strips secured to t-he inner surfaces of the sheet metal coverings, the latter strips being arranged transversely to and interlocking with the former in such a manner as to slide through them in any and every direction as the metal expands and contracts.

To enable others to make and apply my invention to use, I will proceed to describe it with reference to the drawings.

A, is the boarding` with which the roof is covered to receive the outer covering B, of metal which may consist of tin plate or sheet iron. The edge a, of the metal which laps over the cornice C, has the strip o, of india-rubber attached to its whole length by folding the two together as shown in Fig. 2, after the manner of making lap joints in sheet metal. The lower edge of this strip is secured to the front of the corni-ce by nails c, c, at short intervals; `and to make a close 'joint between said strip and the front of the cornice, a narrowstrip of thin metal plate may be applied all along the indiarubber and the nails inserted through this strip. The lap at a., makes a water-tight joint between the india-rubber and the sheet metal'and the india rubber makes a water tight joint with the cornice. The india rubber stretches and contracts longitudinally as the metal expands and contracts, and thus the tightness of the joint between the edge a, of the met-al and the roof is preserved. The same kind of joint may be formed along any other edge .of the sheet metal covering B, if desired. i

f, f, and g, g, are the interlocking strips of metal by which the covering B is secured to the roof at regular intervals; the former being secured to the boarding of the roof by screws h., h, and the latter to the covering BV byrivets z', z', or solder. The forntof the strips g, g, is shown in Fig. 2, the said strips being fiatbut bent nea-r their extremities, that space enough may be left between them and the plate to receive the strips f, f. The latter strips are of the same form but reversed. These strips may all be made of malleable iron by casting and then tinned, or be punched from sheet iron or tin plate, but l prefer as cheaper and more convenient', especially when the covering is of untinned sheet iron, to make the said strips of malleable iron as g, g, can in that case be cast with teats at each end to constitute the rivets z', 2, to secure them to the covering B, and if this is not done when said strips are to be riveted to the covering, the rivets must be secured to g, g, to form upwardly projecting teats before applying them to the roof. The strips f, f, have holes `punched in them to receive the screws 7L, lz..

To apply the covering B, when the strips g, g, are not to be soldered to it, the plates of which the said covering is to be com. posed may be laid on singly and united after they are laid, or a row of plates may be put together to form strips long enough to extend the whole widthof the roof with laps along their edges and the position for the strips f, f, and g, g, are marked oft upon the boarding A, and on the metal covering B, in any convenient manner, and the holes for the screws h, h, bored in the boards A,

and punched in the covering B. The strips f, and g, are then placed together in pairs in the manner shown in the upper left hand corner of Fig. 1, and f, f, are screwed down in their places, and then the plates of meta-l or rows of plates of metal composing the covering are laid one at a time over the strips f, ji, and g, g, and the latter are brought into position, by the aid of rods passed under the plates by hand, for the teats z', z', to enter the holes punched to receive them, and the plates are'then brought down upon them, and the teats z', z', riveted. The plates or rows of plates are afterward united by closing their laps either with or without soldering. When the strips g, g, are to be soldered to the covering B, instead ot' the holes for the teats 2', e', slits are cut in the plates for the ends of said strips to pass through, and the ends of the said strips, which in that case are made without teats, are brought through said slits and soldered to the upper surfaces of the plates. The interlocked strips f, f, and g, g, then form a secure connection between the covering B, and the boarding A, of the roof, which permits the expansion of the said covering in any and every direction without disturbance of t-he strips as g, g, slide freely through or under f, f, both longitudinally and laterally.

The said interlocking strips may be placed at any distance apart that may be considered desirable, but I consider that they need not generally be nearer than about thirty inches :trom each other.

I do not claim, broadly, the attachment of the sheet metal coverings of roofs and other portions of buildings by interlocking connections which leave the metal free to move in all directions, as I am aware that slotted plates set up edgewise have been attached to the roots in pairs to receive small bars attached by loops or eyes to the metal covering, making a much less simple contrivance than my interlocking strips. But

Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. Securing the edges of sheetmetal coverings of roofs and other portions of buildings by means of strips of india-rubber b,

united to the said edges by lap joints and nailed to the building substantially as here in described.

2. The interlocking metal strips f, g,

formed, applied, and operating substantially as herein set forth.

EZRA POLLARD. fitnesses D. RUPERT, I. W. THAYER. 

